World War II took American boys to far-flung places and some rough
duty. For many, mail came infrequently at best, and at times it held
only a Dear John letter. The troops were desperate for some link to
home, some reminder of what they were fighting for. Betty Grable and
her million-dollar legs were the perfect balm for what ailed ’em,
and this 1942 pinup of the easygoing girl with oodles of back-home
charm, and other assets, made the war seem a little more bearable.
Sexy pinups later grew to poster size, perhaps most memorably in the
endlessly reproduced portrait of Farrah Fawcett.